Grizzly Tracksaw

[Greg R Bradley]

I think the person that added up the cost of the pieces was simply trying to make the units be equivalent. They were assuming the supplied blade is junk and would need to be upgraded. The Scheppach as sold by McFeeleys & Grainger came with 25" rails so it needed the connectors and clamps to cut across a 48" sheet of plywood. Actually, that length would do a very poor job of that since you really need most of the 55" rail that comes with the Festool, Makita, and Dewalt to do a good job of cutting 48" plywood. Looks like you can get a 55" rail for the Grizzly so that is a big plus for Grizzly. Looks like the Grizzly comes with a finer blade but who knows how well it cuts.

Unfortunately, the rail and clamp kit look like they may work differently than the others. According to the Grizzly catalog, it looks like the clamps go on the top of the rails which would cause several problems. I can't see how you would make that work well at the start of the cut or let the rail be used on lumber much shorter than the rail. Interesting thing is that the rails and clamps look like a copy of the others so you would think that they would slide inside the track and stay out of the way like the others.

My European tool dealer friend says the kindest reviews of the cheap track saws say that they are "good for the price", not actually good. I think the best less expensive alternative is the Makita or Dewalt when they are periodically put on sale really cheap. The Makita kit, with Tanos case and 55" rail, was $309 at one local tool dealer a few months ago. The Makita is darn close to the Festool in function. The biggest negatives are no offside splinter guard, cutting the splinter guard on the rail when angled, and short non-detachable power cord.

[Ryan Hellmer]

I am looking forward to a hands on review. I read everything on the internet a couple years ago when I bought my Makita tracksaw. I've been extremely pleased with that and very carefully weighed features and comments on build quality into my expectation of the tool. I think I got exactly what I expected and am very pleased. That does not mean that a greater or lesser quality tool could not have done an equivalent job or made the job at hand faster/safer/easier, but it means that I looked at what I expected to do, read others' experiences of it and made an informed decision.

I think that, like most Grizzly stuff, this will do an acceptable job. I see tons of uses for this saw that would not require a festool, but could benefit from the features of a plunging track saw (mostly jobsite finish carpentry, trimming doors or cabinet toekicks for instance). A lot of guys use the festool in lieu of a sliding tablesaw. For building cabinets, spending $500 on a semi-portable setup instead of $5000 on a slider probably makes sense.

I for one keep my Makita, a Skill wormdrive and another standard "skil-saw" in the shop for various tasks. Can't beat the worm for breaking down rough sawn lumber or framing. I use an abrasive blade on my cheapo for metal/masonry. The track gets used for jobs where I feel it will fit. I also keep a euro slider tablesaw and two other standard tablesaws in the shop.

In conclusion, I think the Grizzly will fill a spot in the market place and I hope that the people buying it carefully consider what they expect from it. You get what you pay for, sometimes you just don't need that Rolls Royce.

Ryan

[Shiraz Balolia]

According to the Grizzly catalog, it looks like the clamps go on the top of the rails which would cause several problems.

No they don't.

Plus we redesigned the clamps to be much heavier duty than many of the others on the market.

[Ole Anderson]

Amazing, Shiraz, that you take the time to answer our questions, thank you. I only have one Grizzly tool, a G1023 purchased new in 1998, but it is the centerpiece of my shop. I could have used that track saw yesterday when I was cutting off 4 doors with a sled on the 1023. A bit awkward on a TS.

[Greg R Bradley]

Shiraz,
That picture makes it clear. Small pic in the first post made it look different.

[Greg Portland]

It doesn't seem like I have ever seen any of the other track systems using a clamp and have always wondered how well the track does in staying in place when conditions aren't ideal. Does anybody see these clamps as necessary?

If the wood is swept clean and the back of the rail is clean there is little to no wandering on wide boards. The clamps are nice when you're making cuts in expensive wood and you don't want to take a chance. As a point of reference, I have no problems cutting cherry and walnut 8x4 plywood w/o clamping. On that 8" wide piece of expensive hardwood I'll pull out the clamps...

[Greg Portland]

Not having used a festool I have always wondered if that level of accuracy is needed. You are setting the saw up based off of measurements or pencil marks or both and I have found that no matter how careful you are this leaves a wide birth for inaccuracies to come in to play. I have read enough positive reviews to know plenty of people love the track saw and have always figured that when cutting sheet goods a little inaccuracy doesn't hurt so I would think this would be the perfect place for a Grizzly saw with a little less refinement and 2/3rds the cost.

Keith, I make my final cuts with the tracksaw. I use knife marks or existing pieces to setup the rail. In my experience it cuts as accurately as a table saw (but obviously not as fast).

[Greg Portland]

That was a joke right? Festool will never compete in the low end market of tools. They have lots of tools in the stable and it is a system and geared to the professional who depends on the tools to make money. I've got grizzly tools and I've got some festool. They are not cheap, but for a reason. I doubt they are losing any sleep.

There are a large number of hobbyists who are buying Festool tracksaws (based on what I see in the local WWing store). IMO this is a large portion of their US market and it can be impacted by these other options.

[Peter Kelly]

I'd bet a lot of hobbyists have more expendable cash than professional carpenters. Not exactly the best paying job.

[Alan Bienlein]

After watching the video on the saw and actually having used a festool ts55 I can definitely say I'm gonna order the track saw from Grizzly.

I never thought the festool ts55 was worth the price they want and it always sounded like it was about to blow up with the way it growls almost like it has bad brushes.

[C Scott McDonald]

I hope it turns out to be a nice saw. A track saw is a nice upgrade for any shop. I have the Dewalt Track saw and that thing is aces. It is quiet and leaves a surprising nice edge.

[Mike Heidrick]

I am eagerly wanting one so I can review it in my shop against a Dewalt and TS55 on some hardwood and the menards ply I use. Then I will know for myself how well it performs. I watched the video linked above and the video did not show any closeups or hardwood cuts. A lot of claims saying it was not up to a TS55 were not backed up with an actual example of a TS55 being used.

[Ken Massingale]

Sears has the Scheppach branded one for $218, with 2 25" rails and free shipping. A Grizz rep told me they don't expect any till March. Just another option.

[Curt Harms]

Sears has the Scheppach branded one for $218, with 2 25" rails and free shipping. A Grizz rep told me they don't expect any till March. Just another option.

Is the Scheppach available with 55" rails? If not, it'd take 4 25" rails to cut a sheet of plywod lengthwise and it still wouldn't be any too long. Actually, I doubt 100" of rails would be enough to cut 96", that's only 2" hanging off each end. 110" (2 55") seems like it should work.

[Kevin Guarnotta]

I just wanted to chime in on about the clamps and the tracks. I have the makita track saw, but the dewalt clamps. The Dewalt Clamps are compatible-and work much faster than any of the other clamps. They are speed clamps. Quick and easy to clamp. They may not clamp as tight as a screw clamp-like festool, and this grizzly, and makita-but you shouldn't need it super tight-as the grippy surface at the bottom of the track keeps it from slipping anyway. The clamps are just an 'extra' layer of protection.

Mine came with a 55" rail, and I bought a 2nd one along with the connector rails. I thought this made sense-smaller and easier to store/transport, but still gives me long enough to cut a full plywood sheet. I would not recommend doign this. I could never quite get the two tracks to align perfectly. I could get them close, and if I spent a long enough time with them, I could get them straight. But way too much time. I ended up just getting one of the longer rails. I think 115".

I've had the makita for a little less than a year. I'm happy with it.